Can you get Pregnant while on your Period?

By: Bindu Raichura

There is a common myth that a woman cannot get pregnant while she is on her period. So, people think this time to be the safest to perform unprotected sex. But is it so? Can you get pregnant while on your period?

Previously people thought having sex during period is unholy, messy, or vulgar but now a lot of studies prove that sex during a period can ease the pain and cramps of those days. But is it safe to do unprotected sex this time? Is it possible to get pregnant during your period?

The chances of getting pregnant on period though are very low but not negligible. Each woman has her own different periodic cycle that defines the chance of pregnancy during periods.

Can a Woman get Pregnant while on her Periods?

Can I get pregnant during my period is a common inquiry in many forums. Yes, you can become pregnant on period. Surely the menstruation days are the “less fertile” days of your menstrual cycle, but under certain conditions, conception can happen.

How can you Become Pregnant During Period?

To know the answer to the chances of pregnancy during periods, you will first have to understand what ovulation is, what menstruation on periods is, and what is the menstrual cycle.

Ovulation is the time when an egg is released by your ovary into the fallopian tube. This egg can stay there alive for 24 hours to get fertilized by sperm and then it shifts to the uterus.

During this, the uterus builds up a thin lining to preserve an embryo in it. If the egg gets fertilized then it implants in this lining. And if not, then your body will shed both the lining and the egg in a time duration of generally 28 days, and this is when you bleed or have your periods.

The menstrual cycle is the process that regulates from the beginning of your period to the beginning of your next month’s period. In the 28 days menstrual cycle, ovulation will generally occur 14 to 16 days before the first day of your next cycle. During this ovulation time, you are most fertile and your chances to get pregnant are maximum.

But as the sperm can survive for 3 to 5 days in a woman’s reproductive system, hence a woman can become pregnant between 5 days before her ovulation to 1 day after her ovulation.

This is a general estimation but what if you have a shorter menstrual cycle? For instance, if you have a short periodic cycle such as for 21 days and a 7 days period, then your body will start ovulating before the end of your periods. In such a time having sex can make you pregnant.

What can Cause Pregnancy During Periods?

The answer is, a woman can get pregnant during period, depending on a few factors.

• If you have a short menstrual cycle, then you get very little time between the ending of periods and ovulation. In such a condition, if you have sex towards the last of your periods, and ovulate the upcoming cycle’s egg 2 to 3 days later, then the egg can encounter the viable sperm.
• If your period lasts for long- If your body is slowly releasing the uterine lining (for about 8 to 10 days) and if your next egg starts releasing while you are still bleeding the previous cycle’s non-fertilized egg, then, in such a condition, you can become fertile during periods.
• If you have the tendency of breakthrough bleeding or have spotting in the middle of the menstrual cycle- Some women suffer from light periods or have irregular periods. So they can easily mistake this to be an actual period. If such a breakthrough bleeding happens before or after one day of the ovulation and you have sex, then also you can get pregnant.
• Also, stress, medicines, traveling, and changing normal routines can shift your ovulation days. Thus it can become very hard to predict when you are the most fertile.

Can you Become Pregnant During your Period while using Birth Control?

No, if you use birth control properly then only you can save yourself from unwanted pregnancy. But even these birth controls have their failure rates. So you can say that the 100% effective birth control is not to have sex at all when during your period.

If that is not possible then you need to look for birth control that has fewer failing rates. The most used condoms have 13% failure rates and the oral contraceptive pills have 7% failure rates. The vaginal contraceptive ring has a 7% failure rate but the intrauterine devices or IUD is the most effective birth control with less than 1% failure rate.

Hope you get the answer of can you get pregnant during period.  If you do not want a child now then using birth controls is the only solution to avoid pregnancy. And if you want a baby then choose the middle days of your menstrual cycle for the act of reproduction.

Source: https://www.beingtheparent.com/can-you-get-pregnant-while-on-your-period/

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